Monday, November 26, 2012

“I thought Mount Michael’s trip to Asia was beneficial for a
variety of reasons. It gave us the opportunity to meet with our current
parents, touch base with some of our international alums, and to recruit
new students,” Admissions Director Eric Crawford said. This is the
third time Crawford has been in Asia for recruiting; the trip took place
in late October, and Crawford was joined by Dr. David Peters, Head of
School.

On the trip, Peters and Crawford traveled to China and South Korea.
They visited the cities of Shanghai, Beijing, and Seoul. The main focus
of the trip was recruiting. They attended a school fair in Shanghai
along with 40 other boarding schools from the U.S. and Canada. At the
fair, the pair was able to meet with many students interested in coming
to Mount Michael. Mount Michael rates as the top all-male boarding
school in the country for both affordability and standardized test
scores, making it an attractive choice for international students
looking for an American education. Recruiting was not the only part of
the agenda in China, however. During their stay, Peters and Crawford had
the opportunity to advance Mount Michael’s relationship with Chinese
schools as well. Peters and Crawford visited two schools, a grade school
in Wuxi, China and a high school in Beijing. The visit to the grade
school in Wuxi was set up by the Omaha Chamber of Commerce with the idea
that this institution could become a sister school with Mount Michael.
The high school they visited is the top school in Beijing. Crawford and
Peters met with the assistant principal; they were surprised to learn
that she was so impressed with Mount Michael that her school hopes to
collaborate on school projects with Mount Michael in the future.

Peter’s and Crawford’s stay in Seoul consisted mostly of visiting
with the families of our current students. “Meeting with the parents was
a great way for the parents to meet someone from the school for the
first time, and it was also beneficial for them to get information on
the school,” Peters said. Not only is Mount Michael expanding its
recruiting internationally, the school is looking to recruit more in the
United States. Recently Crawford attended boarding school fairs in both
New York and Dallas to put Mount Michael’s name out on a national
level. He is also putting more ads about Mount Michael in cities such as
Des Moines, Kansas City, and Sioux City. Both these recruiting efforts,
international and national, help Mount Michael maintain its student
population. The school wants to keep the international population at
around 10% so that it will remain an immersion experience for
international students. In order to keep that balance, Mount Michael
needs a broad domestic recruiting system.

In any case, Mount Michael’s enrollment is growing. After this year’s
senior class of 38 graduates, the hope is to have every incoming
freshman class at around 65 students. This will boost the entire
enrollment to about 240, the school’s maximum carrying capacity. In
order to maintain its competitive edge, Mount Michael wants to receive
more applicants than the school can accept. This way, Mount Michael will
have high performing students, both locally and internationally. “We
want to make sure we have the best qualified students coming from all
over. We want to gain more internationally, but we still want to serve
Nebraska students first and make sure we get the best out of Omaha,”
said Crawford.

Mount Michael’s international program is unique. Without the
international students, Mount Michael would lose an aspect of its
culture not found in any other Omaha school, and the trips to Asia only
further strengthen Mount Michael’s international program. “We want to
make this trip to Asia a regular one. We hope to go back every two years
from now on to be able to stay connected with families and alumni in
Asia as well as to implement a new and exciting recruitment tool,”
Peters said.

For John Roshone, coaching is not all about winning. Win or lose, he
cares about his players and puts all of his efforts into improving the
varsity basketball squad as a whole.

Mount Michael’s strong basketball tradition can be traced back to
legendary coach Jim “Killer” Kane. During Kane's Tenure George Roshone,
John’s father served as junior varsity coach. When Roshone retired, the
reins transferred to Jim Mayberger '84. During these eras, Mount Michael
won two state championships and two state runner-ups. Today, the
younger Roshone is carrying on the program’s rich tradition as head
coach.

George
Roshone coached at Mount Michael from 1970 to 1993. He had a big
influence on John’s life. “My dad hasn’t necessarily influenced my
coaching, but he has influenced my life more than anyone else. Some of
my fondest memories of my childhood are going to Mount Michael football
and basketball games on Friday nights, or running around in the gym or
gullies during weekend practices when my dad was coaching,” said
Roshone.

During his high school years, Roshone played football and basketball
for coach Kane. “The most important thing I learned from coach Kane was
that there is no substitute for hard work and at the end of the day, win
or lose, if you played as hard as you possibly could, you should have
no regrets,” Roshone said. He also said that he had the incredible
fortune to play with two all-state basketball players, Pat Moylan and
Kevin Clanton. “Because of them I was able to play on teams that were
very successful. More than anything, those years just reaffi rmed my
love for Mt. Michael as a whole,” said Roshone.

For Roshone, it is still about connecting with his team. He enjoys
his time with the students who, he says, make Mount Michael a great
place. “Roshone is a very committed teacher and a coach. He understands
what it takes to succeed both in the classroom and in the court. Mount
Michael is lucky to have such a respected person as at our school,” said
junior Tommy Maliszewski.
The worst part in Roshone’s coaching career was when Mount Michael
lost to Elkhorn South two years ago at districts and barely missed out
at state as a wild card team. “They started the season 0-5 and won 15 of
16 games after. They were such a great group of seniors to coach and it
was hard to end the season that way knowing I would not coach them
again,” said Roshone.

As the season approaches, Roshone looks forward to seeing his team
improve. “I hope this season can be better than last year's. I want to
focus on rebounding, not turning the ball over and free throws.”

Thursday, November 22, 2012

by Prior Richard Thell, O.S.B.
Over the years I have been asked to write about various monks,
especially at the time of anniversaries or as we say in the monastery:
jubilees. I feel that I never do justice to those monks about whom I
write. Each monk has his own God-given gifts which he uses each day
within and outside of the monastic community. Living and working as
closely together as we do, there is the tendency to take for granted
what others see. What follows is a tribute to three good monks.
In the abbey at Thanksgiving time, the monastic community
celebrated the jubilees of: Abbot Raphael Walsh, Father Stephen Plank
and Brother Francis Schmitz, whose monastic service equal 135 years.
The gifts, talents, and accomplishments of each of these men are many
and varied.
Brother Francis Schmitz celebrates his golden jubilee of
monastic profession this year. Brother Francis sits across from me each
day in chapel during our monastic prayer and daily Mass--he is always
there!! In fact if Brother is not there (which is extremely rare)
someone will go to his room to see if something is wrong. Among the
monks, Brother Francis is known for the steadfastness and good example
he sets for all of us at prayer; his jovial personality, and the wry
comments that he injects into almost every conversation.
Brother first came to Mount Michael in 1961, and was among the
group of men who made up the first novitiate class of Mount Michael
Abbey. After a year of novitiate, Brother France professed his vows as a
Benedictine monk on the feast of Saint Joseph, March 19, 1962.
Although he is now retired, he has held many jobs here at the abbey; he
has worked in the kitchen, on the grounds, and along with Brother Andrew
was responsible for establishing the Christmas tree farm of the 1980s.
Mount Michael alums from the '70s, '80s and '90s will remember
Brother most for his fanatical support of all Mount Michael
athletics--especially basketball. Many who are reading this article
will recall Brother Francis on the sidelines of the basketball court
sitting behind (or, at times, next to) Coach Jim Kane. During the more
heated basketball games, both Coach Kane and Brother Francis would
freely offer advice (encouragement?) to the referees when they thought
an errant call had been made.
What many of the athletes of those days might not know was that
after football and basketball games, Brother would wash the team
uniforms. For many, many years, he worked well into the night making
sure that the Mount Michael uniforms were laundered and repaired; he
took great pride in his work and our teams always had their uniforms
ready and clean for the next game. He is still an avid fan of all Mount
Michael sports, and of course, Nebraska football.
Father Stephen Plank first came to Mount Michael as a freshman
in high school in 1977. After graduation in 1981, he went to
Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas; he then entered the novitiate
at Mount Michael and professed his vows as a monk 25 years ago on July
19, 1987. He studied theology at the Catholic University of America and
was ordained on April 16, 1994. Since that time Father Stephen has
continued his academic interests; he holds several degrees including
degrees in counseling and school administration. Currently he is a full
time member of the Mount Michael Benedictine faculty; he teaches all
the French classes, a college planning class, a psychology class and is
the college guidance counselor.
Over the span of 25 years, Father Stephen has been a Dean in the
school, Spanish teacher, biology teacher and principal. His forte is
languages and for many years Father Stephen has been a teacher in and
chairperson of Mount Michael Benedictine's foreign language department.
As a sign of his excellence and hard work in his field, he was awarded
the 2009 Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award by the Nebraska
International Language Association.
Father Stephen in a voracious reader: fiction, non-fiction,
current events, entertainment, etc. He is a good “go-to” person for
reading suggestions and reviews. His extensive knowledge of history and
all things French gives him plenty of material for very well informed
homilies. He is a gifted homilist; he was able to use this gift and
share his thoughts on 25 years of monastic profession in his homily at
our monastic Thanksgiving Day Mass.
Sixty years ago on May 30, 1952, Abbot Raphael Walsh was
ordained a priest at Conception Abbey in Missouri. He was appointed as
first abbot of Mount Michael on October 6, 1964. Over the years much
has been written about him in the pages of the Michaeleen and he,
himself, has written many articles for this publication; most recently
as president of Mount Michael Benedictine. Although his assignment as
president came to an end two years ago, he is not retired. (That word is
not in his vocabulary.) He continues to serve the community by his
faithful attendance at the Divine Office and Mass, his weekly and
weekend pastoral assignments, and his work in the Mount Michael
Development Office. When Abbot Michael needs a priest for an last
minute assignment he knows he can count of Abbot Raphael who is more
than willing to help.
When he retired as abbot in 1989, Abbot Raphael spent 13 years
as a parish priest at Saint James Parish in Omaha. He worked hard at
that assignment and still maintains contact with many of the friends he
made there. He stays current with what is happening in the church
through he almost daily reading of Catholic publications. When he is
not prayer, reading or working, he likes to play golf which he says is
good for his humility (and prayer life).
At 85, his energy is amazing, and more than one monk has mused
that he hopes to have even a small portion of Abbot Raphael's energy
when reaching that age. When I asked Abbot Raphael what his 60 of
priesthood has meant to him, he said that as a novice he loved to pray
Psalm 23 because of the verse, "One thing I ask of the Lord and this I
seek that I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my
life." He went on to say that "after 67 years as a monk and 60 years as
a priest I thank God that my prayer has been answered."
In his homily to the monastic community on Thanksgiving Day,
Father Stephen acknowledged the 135 years that he, Abbot Raphael and
Brother Francis have given to monastic life. Anyone of you who have met
one or all of these monks knows that they do what they do because of
their love God, His Church, and for their vocation to Mount Michael. For
this, all of us are grateful and we know that Mount Michael will
continue to benefit from many more years of their prayer and service. Ad Multos Annos!!

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Representatives of the entire Mount Michael community of
students, parents, faculty, staff, alumni, and school board members
along with dignitaries, were on hand for the unveiling of our National
Blue Ribbon banner and plaque. Talks were given by Head of School Dr.
David Peters, Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle, and stand-ins for Congressmen Lee
Terry and Jeff Fortenberry. The Mount Michael choir and band also
performed at the celebration.

Thursday, November 15, 2012

At the UNL Math Day, Mt. Michael took 2nd place in class B on the
Probe I written exam and 3rd place in the Quiz Bowl. Out of the 99
schools and 1389 students that participated, Eun Woo Jee placed 21st and
Sung Han Yoon placed 26th.

Friday, November 9, 2012

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Thomas Kalil '14 on being named
all-state/all class by the Nebraska Coaches Association. Senior JT
Cronin was also recognized by the association earning all-state Class B
honors for the second straight year. Kalil and Cronin helped lead Mount Michael to the Class B state cross country championship this past October.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Some students may have noticed a new face at Mount Michael. This is
the face of substitute A.P. Calculus and Honors Physics teacher David
Wooten, who has a doctorate in Applied Physics. Wooten is the father of
senior D.J. Wooten and sophomore Thomas Wooten. Wooten graciously
donated his time to help teach the classes normally taught by Abbot
Michael Liebl for two weeks while Liebl was visiting Rome. “When Abbot
Michael asked me to come and teach, I was more than happy to help,”
Wooten said. Wooten, who graduated from Mount Michael in 1987, has an
interesting and admirable past.

Wooten
came to the Mount in 1984 because he thought an all-boys boarding
school sounded like an ideal escape from his four sisters at home. He
also saw Mount Michael as an academically challenging school that would
cultivate his potential. At Mount Michael, Wooten was taught by Liebl.
“Back then, he was just Father Mike to us, but he was also even scarier.
He used to tell us that sitting was a privilege, and he even made us
stand in class for one whole week when we became a little too rowdy,”
Wooten said. “Father Mike was one of my biggest inspirations for getting
a graduate degree in physics, however. He fostered my interest in this
subject very early on in high school.”

After high school, Wooten attended the United States Air Force
Academy. He then went on to earn a Master’s Degree in Nuclear
Engineering and a Doctorate in Applied Physics from the Air Force
Academy’s Institute of Technology. After earning these degrees, Wooten
switched from the Air Force to serve in Army combat forces. Wooten then
became a special forces Green Beret. He was named a Green Beret A-Team
leader and was stationed in countries such as Panama and Bosnia. After
retiring from combat, Wooten settled down and started a family. He now
works as an active Army advisor dealing with counter proliferation,
which refers to diplomatic, intelligence, and military efforts to combat
the production of weapons.

Mount Michael students have benefitted from Wooten’s experience in
the fields of physics and calculus and from his familiarity with Mount
Michael. “It’s great to have someone familiar with Mount Michael in
class. Mr. Wooten teaches us very well while keeping class fun and
enjoyable. Some of the stories he has told us from his time at Mount
Michael are hilarious,” senior John Thomas Cronin said.
While subbing at the Mount, Wooten has noticed many changes. “When I
went to Mount Michael, only three teachers were not monks. We also
didn’t have a big computer lab or a baseball field. The room where the
computers are now used to be a room filled with typewriters. Typing 101
may have been one of the most useful classes I took at the Mount,”
Wooten said.

Wooten also notes that some things have remained the same. “There is
still a great college-prep atmosphere at Mount Michael. It’s a very
unique school that offers challenging classes and fosters a great moral
fiber in its students. Subbing for Abbot Michael at my alma mater has
been a great experience,” Wooten said.

Monday, November 5, 2012

On Saturday, November 3, Mount Michael participated in the first
Academic Decathlon scrimmage of the year. The scrimmage is not an
official competition, but it helps schools see how they may compare in
three of the seven academic areas and gives students an opportunity to
practice under real test conditions.
Medalists:

Friday, November 2, 2012

Mount Michael/St. John’s alum, Bishop William Dendinger ‘57 came back
to the Mount to celebrate the Feast of All Saints with the entire
school and monastic community. Bishop Dendinger is currently the bishop
of the Grand Island, Nebraska Diocese. Bishop Dendinger reminded the
students that facing life’s difficulties with steadfast commitment to
their faith is the path of White Martyrdom to which we are all called. More Photos